Extract Text Block
Extract Text reads content from a CSS selector on the current page or in an HTML variable, then saves the result for later Blocks.
At a glance
What it does
Extract Text pulls content from matching elements on the current page or from HTML stored in a variable. It can read visible text, HTML, or a specific attribute.
Use it for simple page values such as a title, price, link, count, or repeated text list. Use Extract Data when you need structured rows with multiple fields.
Use it when
- Save the text of one element into a variable.
- Extract every matching text value from a repeated list.
- Read an attribute such as href or src from matching elements.
- Parse HTML saved by an earlier HTTP Request or Template without opening a page.
Do not use it when
- You need multiple fields per row; use Extract Data.
- You need to parse a whole page into a rich object.
- The selector target is not available in the current page state.
Settings
Extract Text requires a selector and an output variable. Choose the current page or an HTML variable as the source, what to extract, and whether to return the first match or all matches.
Source
Required: No- Variables
- Variable name in HTML-variable mode
- Description
- Use the current page, or parse HTML text stored in a selected variable. Page context is only required for current-page mode.
CSS selector
Required: Yes- Variables
- Yes
- Description
- Selector for the element or elements to read.
What to extract
Required: No- Variables
- No
- Description
- Choose text, HTML, or attribute. Text is the default.
Attribute name
Required: Only for attribute mode- Variables
- No
- Description
- Name of the attribute to read, such as href or src.
Match mode
Required: No- Variables
- No
- Description
- Return the first matching value or all matching values.
Output variable
Required: Recommended- Variables
- Variable name
- Description
- Name later Blocks can reference with {{variableName}}.
Outputs
Extract Text writes the extracted value to the configured output variable. The output is a string for first-match extraction or an array when extracting multiple matches.
outputVariableNamestring | string[]The saved variable value. Use the actual configured name in later Blocks.
extractedstring | string[]The raw extracted value shown in the run output.
Example Flow
Extract Text works well after navigation and a readiness wait.
- Open the page with Go To URL.
- Wait for the content selector if the page loads dynamically.
- Extract the text, HTML, or attribute into a variable.
Errors and fixes
Start with symptoms visible in the editor or Inspector, then check the earliest Block that produced the wrong page state, variable, or output.
The output is empty.
- Check
- Confirm the selector matches content in the current page state.
- Fix
- Update the selector or add Wait For Element before extraction.
Attribute extraction returns the wrong URL.
- Check
- Check whether the page uses relative links.
- Fix
- Use the resolved value returned by the runtime, or extract a different attribute if needed.
Local and cloud runs
Local and cloud runtimes both support current-page and HTML-variable sources, interpolate selectors, and save extracted values to variables.
When extracting href or src attributes, both runtimes resolve relative links against the relevant document base URL when one is available.